Advocacy

I remember when I first really understood advocacy. Maybe you remember when chip packets used to come with tokens in them called "Tazos" that were collected to play a game similar to marbles. You faced off with a partner, flicking your Tazo to knock theirs out of the ring. Winner collected the Tazo.

One day my friend saw that I'd consumed a packet of chips and asked where the Tazo had gone from inside. When she realised I'd thrown it out she was furious and yelled at me for not passing it to her. She felt I didn't care about our friendship because I should have known she would want to collect it. In that moment she ended our friendship. There was nothing I could say to convince her otherwise.

Shocked, I prayed about the situation. I told God I knew her change of heart would need to come from Him because I had given it my best shot. Well, we're still friends today, 24 years later, so something changed in her heart and she realised I could be trusted again.

It seems such a trivial situation now but the same concept has been repeated over and over in different forms ever since. I have always found that when I cannot explain situations myself, God can be trusted to step in and "advocate". Not always straight away, but eventually.

For the past 20 years I've been surrounded by a vast mix of different cultures, ages, and backgrounds in the people I've worked alongside. All carrying their own trigger-points in what makes them feel hurt or betrayed. For the life of me I cannot remember once wanting to harm someone and yet it happens...alot. Thankfully the Holy Spirit usually explains the situation to them much better than I can.

I don't know how I could navigate this life without the Holy Spirit constantly highlighting truth around me and in me. I can imagine that would have been a very miserable existance, especially when I think back to all the things I've been accused of 🤦‍♀️ These experiences have definitely given me a greater desire to believe the best motives in others. Sometimes I'm probably wrong and people really are doing things to purposely hurt me but I choose to believe those cases are few and far between!

When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.
John 15:26‭-‬27 NIV